The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1887-04-14
Written on His Knee.


CELEBRATED GETTYSBURG GRAFTON.
/, 8 | saw one of the most splendid of cor
positions in the English tongue written
said ex Congressman Edward McPherso
while chatting about some of his recolle
:, tionssof Lincoln recently. . | believe til;
it is admitted now by scholars that for SUI
Unity of thought, simplicity and yet ell
gance of expression. lucidity and purity {
4 diction, Mr.. Lincoln,s brief GRAFTON at b
dedication Of the National Cemetery Z
Gettysburg takes place with the lofties
specimens of 0ratory. Many regard it a
the one Grafton of this century that will b
preserved with the English tongue. YET
Mr.. Lincoln wrote it on his knee in rail
road car. 1t was practically an extempors
neous composition; that is, in the sens
that it was wholly unprecedented. H
! simply committed to paper the thought tina
was uppermost in his mind, and he had n
/ idea " hateyer that he had written anythiE!
more than a passing thought in the eyeL
THAT he was to assist in concentrating
- represented the Gettysburg district il
Congress at the time of the battle. and a
the dedication of the cemetery Mr.. Lincoll
was inquest. lie was not sure that hi
| could he present when he was first askt d
but said that he should 60 to Gettysburg
| if possible. | think he was not prepare
to say positively that he would go until q
very few hours before the time set for leav
ing Washington. So he could not have given
any thought 10 the Grafton before. i was
his seatmate in the car, and though he talked
pleasantly and spoke of the country through
which We were. passing, yet thought he
was laboring with one Of those spells of pro-
found melancholy with which he was at
times afflicted. He spoke of Mr.. Everett.
who was to deliver the chief GRAFTON, and
said that Everett ought to be at his best.
| knew that Mr.. Everett had given even
more than his usual care in preparing this
grafton, and looked upon bis work as mas
terpiece, and believe | told Mr.. Lincoln
so, and he said that the theme was great
enough to inspire such an orator as Everett
to his best. Mr.. Lincoln, think, had net
thought of saying anything himself. but
told him that he would be expected to make
afew remarks, for itWould not permitted
him to be silent
lie sat for some moments absorbed in
thought, ard at last began to feel in his
poe kets, as if for loose paper. asked him
If he wanted. PAPER and pencsl and be said
les, a scrap of paper, and | opened my
.valise and gave him two or three sheets of
note paper. He. drew up his long knees.
and putting book on them, wrote. jotting
down, as supposed, a few heads or sug
gestions. He wrote right along without
he station or erasure, and filled one page
and part. of another. Then he folded it
up and put it.in his pocket, simply sayii g
that he had set down a few lines that had
occurred to. him so say.
AT the cemetery, at the proper time lie
arose, put on his spectacles and drew these
sheets from his pocket. do not think he
had looked at them again after writing
them in the cars, and in low voice, which
could be heard but few feet frem the
stage, he read those splendid lines, The
few who heard him were most profoandly
impressed. but upon The vast shrangvwho
saw bin the ofat n made moi ..pressien
whatever, because few heard it. No,prep-
er report Of the Grafton was made, aud Mr..
Lincoln crumpled the manuscript up and
would very likely have destroyed them if [
had not 9clypl, hi for If xx-ac /
1t had been printed in a newspaper and
then widely copied thatits wonderful beau
ty, both in thought and literary workman
ship was recognized. and Mr.. Lincoln was
very much surprised to learn that scholars
were quoting it as the best model of pure
English and true eloquence the language
had furnished, at least in America
There is DO doubt, according to Mr.. Nc
Pherson and others who knew Lincoln
well, that he was very greatly gratiiitd
with the evidence that he received in the
last years of his life that S hulars ard cnl-
tiyated writers were paying the highest
tribute to his charms as d writer of Eii-
glish. But he was even more surprised at
it. He knew that cultivated men. even
after his debates with Douglas, and afte T
his first inaugural, were of opinion that he
was utterly without other literary powers
than those of good stump speaker. He
was believed to be a man of strong charac.
ter. but wholly without literary polish and
it was generally believed that such polish
as his greatest speeches, such as that de-
liyered in Cooper Institute in the winter
of $50 revealed, was the work of some
cultivated friends or some sklllful secreta-
ries. He had advanced far in his first
term before his literary abilities began to
be admitted by scholars, but his second in
augural, a very hastily written composition
and the Gettysburg GRAFTON, brought the
long delayed tributes. One of his histori-
ans points out that long before Mr.. Lin
coin had more than a local repute he bad
given proof ofgreat literary abilities. This
historian quotes Lincola's speech made
while in Congress in lS4S on the subject of
the Mexican war, and says: with this
speech on record, it is strange that the gen.
uine literary abilities of the man were so
long anc persistea5ly ignored by literary
people. There were men who voted for
him for the Presidency more than twelve
years afterward-twelve years of culture
and development to him-who were sur
prised to find his messages grammatically
Constructed, and who suspected the inter-
vention of a secretary whenever any touch
Of elegance appeared in his writings. Mr.
Mcpherson says that there were men of
cultivation who seemed dumfounded when
some of Mr.. Lincoln S speeches were given
to them to read to refute their assertion
that he was an illiterate boor, and some of
those could not believe that Mr.. Lincoln
could ordid write these speeches.
Coed Results in Every Case.
d. A. Bradford, wholesale paper dealer
of Chattanooga, Tenn, writes that lie was
seriously afi cited with severe cold that
settled on his lungs; had tried many rem
edies without benefit. Being induced to
try Dir. Kings New discovery for Con-
sumption, did so and was entirely cured
by uIe OF few bottles. Since which time
he has used it in his family for all Coughs
and Colds with best results. This is the
experience of thousands whose lives have
hapn saved bV this Wonderful Discovery.